Against the Tyranny of Winners: On beautiful business in the AI age, the rise of “Supercuration”, and the end of efficiency with Tim Leberecht

What if the future of business isn’t human at all—and maybe that’s exactly what will liberate us to become more humane? In this first episode of season 2, Ben sits down with Tim Leberecht, co-founder and CEO of the House of Beautiful Business, and author of The Business Romantic. Speaking from Istanbul, Tim doesn’t mince words: business is fundamentally broken, caught in an unholy alliance of technocracy, late-stage capitalism, and rising authoritarianism. Yet in this darkness, he sees the seeds of something radically different. Key Ideas: Business is hitting rock bottom—the perfect moment to imagine something radically different The false gods of modern management: optimization, efficiency, and winning Why the future of business may not be human, but must remain humanist From economy of efficiency to economy of care and wonder Supercuration: the art of benevolent exclusion and caring for ideas The death of agency and the birth of new forms of dignity Why the only dignified work is the work we do for ourselves as artists Love, care, and world-building as essential leadership qualities Resources & References House of Beautiful Business – Global community humanizing business The Business Romantic – Tim’s manifesto against optimization Against the Tyranny of the Winners (published in German) Supercuration – Forthcoming book on the art of curation The Poly Opportunity – Series examining intersecting positive trends Douglas Rushkoff on attention and human connection Hartmut Rosa’s Resonance – Sociology of vibration and attunement Gianpiero Petriglieri on love and leadership Shoukei Matsumoto’s Work Like a Monk Connect with Tim Leberecht: Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tleberecht/ Website: https://timleberecht.com/ Company: https://houseofbeautifulbusiness.com/ Send us Fan Mail Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/poetsandthinkerspodcast/ Subscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/poets-thinkers/id1799627484 Subscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4N4jnNEJraemvlHIyUZdww?si=2195345fa6d249fd Send your ideas, feedback and guest recommendations to [email protected]